


Starting Over

by Booklover1004



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Feels, Boys Being Boys, Canon Compliant, Eventual Romance, M/M, Miscommunication, Post-Canon Fix-It, Reconciliation, Song Lyrics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:19:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23383642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Booklover1004/pseuds/Booklover1004
Summary: Set after the release of Fine Line.  Zayn finally decides to do what he should have done close to five years ago - Talk to Harry instead of communicating via song lyrics
Relationships: Zayn Malik/Harry Styles
Comments: 4
Kudos: 60





	Starting Over

**Author's Note:**

> So this plot bunny has pretty much taken over my life ever since Fine Line was released and I had to write these two idiots reconciling. Pretend that Zigi is not a thing in 2020 and that Harry and Zayn are both single and ready to sort out their issues as grownups rather than dramatic hoes.

_You need to listen to Harry's new album_

Zayn looked up from his phone. Gigi meant well, he knew that but honestly, there should be some ground rules about how supportive your ex-girlfriend should be about your ex-bandmate's solo ventures.

Especially considering that Zayn had started dating Gigi to forget about said ex-bandmate in the first place.

_I'll check it out sometime soon_

_Obviously_ Zayn had completely forgotten about the fact that Harry had a new album coming out. Just as he had obviously not preordered the damn thing when it went on sale. And it was certainly not sitting unopened on his coffee table for the past week. Damn G for bringing it up.

So naturally to forget it all, Zayn logged onto Twitter and typed Fine Line in the search bar. His eyebrows shot up.

'Brown skin and lemon over ice?!?!?' Are you kidding me?

Zayn has two songs titled Golden and She too!

So you are telling me that Harry just happened to release his album on the day before the one year anniversary of Icarus Falls? STFU!!

And so on.

It was everything. Gifs, memes, lyrics, screenshots. What the everloving fuck had Harry done now?

"Fucking Styles." He had to listen to the damn thing now, didn't he?

His eyes flickered to the coffee table where the package lay. No, there would be time for that later. Harry's album art was not something that he wanted to deal with considering that it was rumored and not in _anyway_ confirmed to have a naked Harry sprawled out across it. Spotify would have to suffice for now.

Zayn plugged in his earphones and opened the tracklist which he had _absoutely never seen before and had not spent the past month obsessing over, thank you Gigi._

Might as well get this over with. There was no way it could be worse than the emotional trainwreck of Meet Me In The Hallway.

He hit play.

Not even three seconds in, Zayn's eyes had narrowed into slits. He recognized the tune oh so very well. It was from Entertainer after all. And the song was titled Golden.

It just got worse from there on. If Golden was a response to his own song of the same name, Adore You was so fucking blatant with Harry crooning about 'Brown skin and lemon over ice'; Cherry with it's 'Don't call me baby again' and Camille fucking Rowe's voice message at the end; To Be So Lonely with 'Don't blame me for falling, I was just a little boy.'

Zayn was not even going to touch She and Sunflower considering he had a song of the SAME NAME released three years ago and a fucking sunflower tattooed across his neck.

It was an excellent album undoubtedly, so very Harry in every possible way but the two songs that stayed with Zayn long after the album ended were Falling and Fine Line. Hearing Harry croon 'And I get the feeling that you'll never need me again' along with 'You've got my devotion but man I can hate you sometimes' had him biting his cheek until he drew blood.

Why did Harry have to be so very honest in his music again? 

The thing is, that whatever may have happened, Zayn had never not needed Harry. Harry had always been such a constant in his life for five years that he had been in the band, always there to keep Zayn grounded and providing a focus to cling to when everything else had gone to shit.

He had not handled it well back then, too scared to tell Harry how he actually felt about him considering that he had been engaged at the time. He had always told himself that they were just friends with benefits when the truth was that Harry Styles was the damn sun around who Zayn was caught in a helpless orbit around all the damn time.

It wasn't the healthiest relationship back then, Zayn could freely admit that now. They were wierdly codependent on each other, with Harry having such low self esteem that he had been willing to be with Zayn despite being the third party in the relationship, the afterthought.

Zayn himself had been too busy freaking out about his sexuality and rushing into an engagement when he was barely twenty and creating a right mess of things.

However, it had been love.

He had genuinely cared about Harry, wishing at times that things had been different. That maybe they had met as ordinary people, him as a Literature student and Harry as a Pre-Law kid who didn't have the world watching every single move they made.

For the past four years, Harry had always been the one who got away. But now, maybe, just maybe he still had a chance. They had both spent the last four years and two albums each writing song after song about each other, neither one of them having the courage to call or text the other. Well, that was about to change.

Thank god that Gigi had taken it upon herself to enter Harry's newest number in his phone as she always did whenever the fucker changed his number.

_Loved the new album. Congratulations. I would like to catch up sometime. Give me a call when you are in London and we'll arrange something. - Z_

It was not much but atleast it was a start. Now all he could do was hope that Harry would respond. 


End file.
